This paper embarks on household waste and its management strategies. It gives an insight into the strategies to manage household waste, pillars of waste management structure, factors affecting household waste management, and the measures needed to motivate people to take-up waste management activities. Ample literature was reviewed for the purpose and it was revealed that food waste is the most common type of waste generated from the households. The 3R strategy, composting, pyrolysis, decluttering, and WMC (Waste Management Charge) are effective strategies for managing household waste. Pro-environmental values, circumstantial strands, and balanced psychological factors serve as pillars for a strong waste management structure. High knowledge, positive attitude, and righteous values and beliefs are positively linked with waste management, whereas, lack of facilities and regulations for waste management, low education, and economic status is negatively associated with waste management. Administrative measures, economic measures, physical measures, and effective information dissemination are important measures that should be undertaken to motivate people to take up waste management activities. Based on the literature reviewed, a model/ schema of household waste management is developed and presented in the paper.

Thailand, like many countries around the world, is in the midst of a significant plastic waste crisis. In 2019, the government of Thailand released the Roadmap for Plastic Waste Management 2018-2030 and is developing the National action plan on Marine plastic debris to alleviate the current impacts and avert future damage caused by marine plastic debris. While these efforts are critical steps toward reining in the country’s plastic pollution problem, further insight is needed into where the plastic waste comes from and how it moves in the environment. This study aims to better understand how plastic waste travels from land-based sources to marine environments by analyzing the material flow of plastic waste in five high-priority catchments. The study presents the first large-scale assessment in Thailand to integrate national waste generation and waste management performance data with actual hydrological conditions to estimate how mismanaged plastic waste is carried and discharged into the marine environment. This report is designed to assess how much mismanaged plastic waste (MPW) is flowing into the Gulf of Thailand. In Chapter 2, the approach and methodology are presented and explained, and the various definitions used in the report are discussed. The results of the models are presented in Chapter 3. The solid waste management model results are provided first, followed by the results from the fate and transport models. Chapter 4 provides the final conclusions and recommendations, which offer priority lists and examples of recommended measures to reduce marine debris.

Household waste is the most significant contributor to the accumulation of waste in the final processing area. Indonesia produces 65.2 million waste per year. Improper waste management practices in Indonesia require evaluation steps to achieve sustainable waste management. This study aims to formulate an evaluation instrument for the implementation of household waste management using the analysis of the Household Waste Control Index (HWCI) calculation. This study uses quantitative methods by collecting data from a survey of 548 waste bank members spread across 12 districts in Bekasi City and using the analysis of the calculation of the Household Waste Control Index. Based on the study results, it is known that the implementation of household waste management in Bekasi City is in the moderate category (5.86 out of 10), and the governance of household waste management at the community level still needs to be improved. Furthermore, based on the validation results, it is concluded that the household waste control index can be recommended as an instrument to measure, evaluate, and consider recommendations for waste management policies to realize sustainable household waste management in Bekasi City and other areas that have similar conditions to Bekasi City.

Countries worldwide are struggling to develop strategies and infrastructure for appropriate disposal of the increasing medical waste generated by the COVID-19 pandemic. This study examines the available knowledge and current practices in medical/healthcare waste management worldwide, particularly in countries with transitional economies, including the dependence of medical waste generation rate on various socioeconomic and environmental parameters. Here, we conducted a meta-analysis of medical and healthcare waste management practices in 78 countries. We identified impediments and challenges facing the integration of medical waste management into a prospective circular economy according to statistical correlations with human development index (HDI), life expectancy (LE), healthcare expenditure (HE) per capita of gross domestic product (GDP), and environmental performance index (EPI). The results highlight the importance of knowledge and awareness of best practices for infection and injury prevention for waste management among workers. An average of 38.9% of medical waste was segregated for proper management, and only 41% of workers were trained in-service for medical waste disposal. Plastic materials constituted approximately 35% of medical waste, presenting an opportunity for sustainable resource recovery and recycling. It is imperative for all countries to adopt environmentally sustainable management of medical waste to prevent catastrophic stockpiling of infectious waste during and after pandemics. Additionally, we present an outline for future studies on medical waste generation rate and various socioeconomic and environmental parameters that should be investigated in future work to promulgate an inventory of the database for sustainable management of medical/healthcare waste.

Globally, abundant agricultural wastes (AWs) are being generated each day to fulfil the increasing demands of the fast-growing population. The limited and/or improper management of the same has created an urgent need to devise strategies for their timely utilization and valorisation, for agricultural sustainability and human-food and health security. The AWs are generated from different sources including crop residue, agro-industries, livestock, and aquaculture. The main component of the crop residue and agro-industrial waste is cellulose, (the most abundant biopolymer), followed by lignin and hemicellulose (lignocellulosic biomass). The AWs and their processing are a global issue since its vast majority is currently burned or buried in soil, causing pollution of air, water and global warming. Traditionally, some crop residues have been used in combustion, animal fodder, roof thatching, composting, soil mulching, matchsticks and paper production. But, lignocellulosic biomass can also serve as a sustainable source of biofuel (biodiesel, bioethanol, biogas, biohydrogen) and bioenergy in order to mitigate the fossil fuel shortage and climate change issues. Thus, valorisation of lignocellulosic residues has the potential to influence the bioeconomy by producing value-added products including biofertilizers, bio-bricks, bio-coal, bio-plastics, paper, biofuels, industrial enzymes, organic acids etc. This review encompasses circular bioeconomy based various AW management strategies, which involve ‘reduction’, ‘reusing’ and ‘recycling’ of AWs to boost sustainable agriculture and minimise environmental pollution.

It is no news that waste generation is on the increase, making it more problematic for governments to manage. In the global south, the informal recycling sector has become notable for its contributions to municipal waste management through resource recovery, as shown by the current body of research. However, due to the seemingly well-organised waste management system, the existence and roles of this sector in municipal solid waste management in the global north are largely under-documented. Using a community-based research methodology and applying mixed methods, we examined the roles of the informal recycling sector in municipal waste management in Vancouver, British Columbia as well as their level of participation in decision-making. Results demonstrate that the sector enhances waste diversion and recovery efforts and works in collaboration with the city government as well as other stakeholders. The study also shows that informal recyclers (locally called binners) participate in some level of decision-making processes such as the Single-Use Item Reduction Strategy; however, their participation in other key waste management decisions including the City’s Recycling Bylaw remains challenging, which significantly impacts their day-to-day survival. We, therefore, highlight the need for a transformative participatory policy/decision-making process to promote more harmonious and inclusive municipal waste management.

Efficient management of solid waste is essential to lessen its potential health and environmental impacts. However, the current solid waste management practices encounter several challenges. The development of effective waste management systems using advanced technologies is vital to overcome the challenges faced by the current approaches. Artificial Intelligence (AI) has emerged as a powerful tool for applications in various fields. Several studies also reported the applications of AI techniques in the management of solid waste. This article critically reviews the recent advancements in the applications of AI techniques for the management of solid waste. Various AI and hybrid techniques have been successfully employed to predict the performance of various methods used for the generation, segregation, storage, and treatment of solid waste. The key challenges that limit the applications of AI in solid waste are highlighted. These include the availability and selection of applicable data, poor reproducibility, and less evidence of applications in real solid waste. Based on identified gaps and challenges, recommendations for future work are provided. This review is beneficial for all stakeholders in the field of solid waste management, including policy-makers, governments, waste management organizations, municipalities, and researchers.

Waste generation rates have increased with rapid population and economic growth worldwide, especially in tourism cities. Nan Province and Luang Prabang (LPB) are twin cities that have been popular tourist destinations. The impact of unmanaged waste threatens the socioeconomic environment in both places. Three waste management scenarios were developed to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the municipal solid waste (MSW) sector in Nan and LPB by 2030. Sensitivity and benefit–cost (B/C) analyses were performed, and alternative scenarios were proposed. With the use of available waste management technology, all developed scenarios in both locations could achieve net-zero emissions within the difference contexts of the city such as waste composition. From this study, on-site waste sorting is the key for waste management to achieve net-zero emissions. Sensitivity analysis revealed that, with an average carbon price of 28.42 USD/tCO₂e, all scenarios in Nan and LPB were feasible, except for scenario 2 (off-site waste sorting) in LPB. This study found that it would be challenging but achievable to reach the net-zero emissions target. The challenge includes the increased on-site waste separation rate and raising public awareness concerning municipal solid waste management as well as its importance for effective waste management. These developed scenarios show a pathway for the waste sector to achieve net-zero emissions by 2030 with available waste management technology in Nan and Luang Prabang, and the possibilities for other locations facing similar situations.